In this session, John Ford, seasoned mediator from San Francisco with experiences in Southern Africa, introduces the idea of faux emotions—statements like “I feel disrespected” or “I feel betrayed”—that sound like feelings but are actually judgments in disguise. Just as a tracker learns to tell true prints from misleading ones, mediators learn to distinguish genuine emotions from the stories people tell about them. When we can see these “false tracks” without judgment, we can follow them inward, to the authentic feelings and unmet needs that guide people toward understanding and repair.